The Pittsburgh Steelers beat the Cleveland Browns, 27-14, on Sunday without their No. 1 receiver in George Pickens. Despite not having Pickens, former Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger wanted the team to push the ball down the field more.
“Ask Coach [Mike Tomlin] where’s Mike Williams?” Roethlisberger said Tuesday on the DVE Morning Show. “I was screaming at our offense, because the safety, most of the game was like eight, nine yards deep. I’m like, ‘Take a shot, somebody. Come on.’ And so I thought going into this game, I was like, ‘Ok, with George down, this will be a great opportunity for them to really see Mike Williams and let’s get him in there, and really develop into what I think they need, is a true number two.’ I mean, they took a couple of shots, but not as much as I thought they would have or should have this game.”
Williams had three catches for 36 yards with another catch wiped off the board because of offensive pass interference. It wasn’t a standout day, but he did make a nice catch downfield and showed off some of his skill set and what he could bring to the Steelers if he plays a larger role. The passing attack was slow to get going, but eventually, Russell Wilson settled in and was able to connect with TE Pat Freiermuth on some explosive plays.
Had Pickens been healthy, there’s no doubt that the Steelers would’ve looked downfield more and tried to target him deep, and while Williams offers a similar skill set, the Steelers didn’t force the ball to him downfield. There wasn’t much of an issue with the game plan after the first quarter, and the Steelers put up nearly 30 points without Pickens.
I can understand where Roethlisberger is coming from, as two of Pittsburgh’s touchdown drives had an explosive passing play earlier in the drive, with a 21-yard completion to Freiermuth and a 22-yard completion to Williams. But the Steelers also ran the ball well and there was no real need to continually push the ball deep.
When Pickens returns, whenever that may be, the Steelers will likely continue to take their fair share of shots, but without him, they seem content to work their way down the field. Williams has the capability to be a deep-ball threat, but he only played 19 snaps against the Browns. The team is still seemingly working him into the offense, and injuries and age have also seemed to take a toll on Williams. That doesn’t mean he’s not or can’t be productive but relying on him to be a Pickens Lite when he’s out seems a little unrealistic at this point.
We’ll see what the Steelers’ offense looks like on Sunday if Pickens indeed remains out, but Roethlisberger once again may not be happy with the lack of shots downfield.
